Speed and simplicity are the values that air passengers place at the top of their list of concerns. reveals the latest study by IATA on the needs of travellers.
This quest for speed, flexibility and convenience is reflected at every stage of air travel, from planning to booking to completion. According to the association's study, 82% of the 13,487 passengers surveyed are satisfied or positively satisfied with their flight in 2024This figure is stable compared with 2023.
Upstream planning with the help of digital technology
When planning and booking, three priorities are expressed by...
Speed and simplicity are the values that air passengers place at the top of their list of concerns. reveals the latest study by IATA on the needs of travellers.
This quest for speed, flexibility and convenience is reflected at every stage of air travel, from planning to booking to completion. According to the association's study, 82% of the 13,487 passengers surveyed are satisfied or positively satisfied with their flight in 2024This figure is stable compared with 2023.
Upstream planning with the help of digital technology
At the planning and booking stage, three priorities are expressed by travellers. These areproximity to the airport (68 %), minimising total travel time (33 %) and getting the best price (25 %).
71% of travellers say they book their trip online or via a mobile application, 53% preferring to use an airline's website or app9% online agencies, 8% price comparison sites. At the other end of the scale, 16% travellers have encouraged human interaction.
At the time of booking, 32% of passengers would like all the information relating to the trip to be grouped together in a sheet or document. 28% of passengers want total transparency on what is included and optional in the fare quoted (baggage, seat, etc.). In third place was the ease of reserving a seat (19%).
Payment, 79 % prefer to pay for their trip with a credit or debit cardfollowed by digital wallets (20 %), particularly among the younger generations. 70% adopt a payment method for its simplicity. The other criteria are benefits (39 %) and security (33 %). Nevertheless, 16% of travellers surveyed expressed dissatisfaction with their payment experience. 19% have even given up adding ancillary services because of payment difficulties.
According to the IATA survey, passengers are generally prepared to pay higher costs to benefit from easier planning conditions. Also in the interests of convenience, 89% of passengers are prepared to join an airport programme to speed up security formalities, 86% wish to obtain their visa before travelling. 45% would like to have completed all immigration procedures before departure. Finally, 36% would like to have completed all check-in formalities before arriving at the airport.
Biometric technology is less scary
At the airport, 70 % of passengers say they want to be at the boarding gate in 30 minutes or less with just hand baggage. 74 % expect it to take no longer than 45 minutes with a checked bag. In general, 70 % of passengers say they would be more inclined to check in a bag if they could do so in advance.
And finally.., travellers are gradually adopting biometric identification. 46 % of them have already used it at the airport. The highest rate of use is at immigration checkpoints (43 %).
75 % of them would prefer to use biometrics rather than traditional passports and boarding passes. 73% of respondents would like biometric data to be used instead of passports and boarding passes. If 84% of passengers say they are satisfied with the use made of their biometric dataHowever, 50 % say they are concerned about the protection of the latter.
The under-25s are the most proactive users of technology. 51 % of them would opt for digital wallets for payments. Digital technology is therefore getting a real thumbs-up. 90 % of travellers say they are interested in using a smartphone with a digital wallet, a passport and loyalty cards for reservations.
